You have probably heard that a work injury can keep people out of work for a while. One Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) study reports that work injuries lead to an average of seven lost workdays. Yet there are factors that can make you feel like you’re being forced back to work after an injury.
Some of these factors include things like a lack of adequate health insurance and not being able to face a loss of wages. A money crunch is especially likely to force you back to work after an injury. This can lead to consequences. Fortunately, physical therapists can still take steps to help you even if you’re having to force yourself to go back to work after an injury.
Forced to go back to work after an injury? Physical therapists can help you in these three ways:
- Mitigating injury aggravation — A work injury is often caused by repetitive movements or tasks that you perform at work. Going right back to them after an injury can simply aggravate the injury. This can lead to more pain and a longer healing time. Physical therapists can help mitigate injury aggravation if you’re forced to go back to work after an injury. They can help you find alternate ways of doing work tasks that are easier on your injured body part. Your physical therapist can also help improve your posture, which can help ease the strain on your injured body.
- Continuing to treat your injury — Just because you had to go back to work doesn’t mean you can’t still treat your injury. Physical therapists can continue to treat your injury even after you return to work. They may do this through in-person sessions or exercise programs you can do at work. You may even be able to meet with your physical therapist virtually. These virtual PT sessions allow you to meet with your clinician via an online video feed. All you need is a compatible device and an internet connection.
- Helping you avoid this situation in the future — Feeling like you’re being forced back to work after an injury isn’t a good feeling. Physical therapists recognize this fact. That’s why they’ll seek to help you avoid this situation in the future by working to reduce your injury risk. They can accomplish this goal by helping you improve your strength and flexibility. Additionally, your physical therapist may recommend ergonomic adjustments that can help make your workspace safer.
SOL PT is ready to help you even if you are forced back to work right after an injury
Don’t face being forced back to work after an injury alone. Our SOL Physical Therapy team is ready to partner with you to address work injuries — even if the circumstances aren’t ideal. The individualized treatment plan we can build for you will seek to meet every one of the goals discussed above. Also, our plans are designed to help ease pain and help you get back to normal faster.
Contact our team today for more information about our work injury treatment services or to schedule an initial appointment to start getting our help with your injury.
